Blog about a recent newspaper article, magazine article, movie clip, TV ad, or other non-fiction source that gets you thinking and questioning some aspect of Social Injustice in society today. Look for aspects of the topic that are more controversial, that make you think/question, and not for something that you already know and are comfortable with. Also, please do not just Google "Social injustice". Use your in-class journal writing, as well as your own eyes and brain to find something that speaks to you about Social Injustice, something that you REALLY have SOMETHING to say.
These texts could explore one or more of the essential questions for the quarter and/or questions of your own:
• Why do Social Injustices exist and what makes them occur?
• Do we-as individuals-have a responsibility to address them?
• What explains that some people chose to act and address these injustices, while others are bystanders?
Include in your post: (1) a link to your text, (2) commentary on how this text got you thinking (affirming/contradicting) your own views about that specific Social Injustice in society (include specific references from the text by paraphrasing and'or including specific quotes).
(3) commentary about why you are choosing to write about this issue of Social Injustice. In other words-why do you care about this issue? What are you hoping to discover by exploring this issue? What are you hoping to help others see by writing about it?
In addition, read posts by others and comment thoughtfully on their ideas. This is a conversation. You may ask questions, agree and disagree (respectfully) with one another, contribute additional relevant information, share a related personal experience; in short, you may respond in any way that furthers the conversation about the ideas presented in the original post.
Due Dates: Blog Comments: Monday, March 23 by 7am
Blog Responses: Tuesday, March 24 by 12 pm.
Angeliz Gonzalez
ReplyDeleteEnglish 2 Honors
Dima
19 March 2015
http://articles.latimes.com/2013/oct/19/nation/la-na-illinois-cyber-bully-20131020
This article about bullying is very interesting, the young and innocent young boy died because he was being bullied. After I read about this book it really made me wonder how many kids in the world are either killing themselves and/or running away because of bullies. The article is mainly about a 15 year old boy who shot himself in the chest because he was tired of all the bullying he would get in school. Jordan Lewis the young boy had left a note saying that the reason why he was going it was because he was getting bullied. His father Lewis had gotten a phone call saying that his son shot himself with a gun at his ex wife's house. It really got my attention because it was just crazy how this young boy died and how his father did all that he could to find justice and have the kids that bullied his child get justice! I chose to write about this article because of that fact that Lewis would anything for their child without even thinking twice and I agree with him 100%. I care about this issue because many kids are going through this and don't know how to handle it or even tells people because they are afraid of what others have to say, and then when they killing themselves its too late. I am hoping to discover that Jordan did get justice and that because of this situation that kids in the world will stop bullying other kids and that schools and parents start doing something about bullying. I also hope to see that if you see someone getting bullied don't stand there, go and do something go tell someone about it. Also, that everyone start to taking bullying serious because it can really damage a persons life forever and their loved ones.
I find this article in treating. The boy had an option to write the note to show why he did what he did. The reason for doing so is to prevent it from happening to any other student in the future. This article shows that society shows prejudice then shows sympathy and regret after self endangerment and death.
DeleteAngeliz, I agree with your point, the topic you chose is one of the biggest issues going on today. Teens especially stress everyday because of bullying and I feel we as a society should stop acting as bystanders and step in to prevent situations like this from escalating to the point where the victim decides to commit suicide.
DeleteJuan Agudelo
ReplyDeleteEnglish 2 Honors
Mrs. Dima
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TxwOVRzQoGo
This video is about a guy that's getting bullied by another guy. He tries giving the bully cigarettes so the bully would stop punching him, the bully stops for like a second and the victim keeps giving him cigarettes, the bully keeps punching him and the bystanders were telling the victim to punch him back and he didn't because he didn't wanna fight, the bystanders started calling him names because he wouldn't act back but none of them did something to stop this they all just kept recording and calling him names. They should have put themselves in the victim's shoes, if they would have done that I think that they would have done something but I guess recording for social medias is more important than helping another human out. I also understand why they wouldn't act , they didn't wanna get punched or hurt if they got in the middle of the fight. At the end someone decides to step up and take the bully down, the bully stands up all shocked because he didn't think that he was gonna get punched but he got what he deserved. The bystanders laughed, they didn't care. For them watching people get hurt is funny until it happens to them. I don't understand why the bully kept hitting him, maybe he wanted more smokes? I guess since he got the reaction he wanted from the victim and since nobody was stopping him he just kept going to get the same reaction over and over. I chose this issue because a lot of people around me has gone through this issue, I personally haven't gone through this issue, I have been called names and someone made fun of my country but I took it as a joke, nothing serious, I didn't want to make a big deal over nothing. I have had friends that told me they thought of suiciding because someone was bullying them but then they realized that that wasn't the only way out it was just really an easy way out and it could've affected a lot of people around them, like their families would've probably been depressed. I want to know why bullies bully, I want to know their stories, what they experienced during their childhood maybe that lead to them bullying. I want to help others see that suicide isn't the way to stop bullying, it's actually going to bring more consequences to the people that you love and care about you, so before ending your life you should think twice if it's actually worth it. I know this didn't happen in the video but bullying could affect and make someone do this.
Juan I see how this is an perfect example on bullying but what if you were in the victim shoes.I have never met a person who won't fight back if they are in danger I am wondering why the bully is trying to fight but im also wondering why the victim is not fighting back.
DeleteWillow M. Giannotti-Garlinghouse
ReplyDeleteEnglish Honors II
A3 Dima
http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_how_to_escape_education_s_death_valley?language=en
Sir Ken Robinson is a "Creativity expert" and education reform activist. He speaks, in his TED Talk, about the ways in which our school system kills creativity, and the way in which the standardization of our education discourages learning. He speaks about the way in which we re steadily "deprofessionalizing" our teachers, by giving them their lesson plans, lesson plans that are identical across the nation. But here's the thing: our students are not identical. No two people learn in the same way, so why are we teaching them in the same way? I'm currently working on a project at ECA that is attempting to look at the way we educate students through the view of the students. It's raised so many questions for me, the most important of which, I think, is How? How have we ignored, for so long, the individuality of our students and teachers? We have created a system that "weeds out" students who have trouble focusing on and completing, working that doesn't inspire them. We have so many students that have the potential to succeed, but can't in our system of test prep, then tests, the test prep again. It is an issue that not only affects students when they're in school but later in life too; in college, applying for jobs, and becoming a well-rounded person. And if children really are our future, isn't it time that we started encouraging them to explore and grow on their own terms?
It is clear you have a lot of information and ideas about this issue. It makes me wonder: what are some things you would do, if you could, to reform our school system? How would you teach or change the learning process?
DeleteIt is clear you have a lot of information and ideas about this issue. It makes me wonder: what are some things you would do, if you could, to reform our school system? How would you teach or change the learning process?
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteWillow, I totally agree with you on how each student learns differently. I also believe that the education provided to us, the students, is limited and it makes us believe that we have to live up the educators' "expectations." We should have more of a say on how and what we are taught in order for us to be prepared in the future in the subjects we are interested in. The education system really needs to be open to more ideas and suggestions and expand from those and so on.
Deletehttps://m.youtube.com/watch?v=M5CWWcJD8aw
ReplyDeleteThis video made me realize how hard it affects someone when they're discriminated. Also, you shouldn't deny a person rights to sit next to you and your friends during lunch time, as in the video. If I was in the situation of watching that happen, I would be upset and eventually invite the individual to sit with me. I do not agree with social injustice, you shouldn't be told what to do because of your social, race, ethnicity background, etc. The video repeatedly emphasizes the reactions of the situations, which was the punch in the face. Respresenting how hard discrimination hurts to the victims.
The topic interests me because, I want to explore more inhuman actions, how others react to it, and what and how they prevent these actions. I also want to discover the actions being abolished. Hopefully, I am informing others, that you shouldn't feel superior to another individual due to things they cannot control, such as gender or racial backgrounds. Also to stop and not do these cruel and horrific actions.
Jaquasia, I absolutely agree with you as you say "you shouldn't feel superior to another individual due to things they cannot control," I believe a lot of people take things such as gender and racial backgrounds and use it as a weapon to other individuals not realizing that we are all in fact equal. I also though it was interesting as to how you included how you would be curious to see steps to preventing a similar situation because many people would just think about the reactions and consequences. I believe people should stop allowing these situations to occur as well.
DeleteI agree with your opinion on social injustice. No one should ever feel inferior because of their race because that is something they are born with and they can't change it. I like how you added that we should do something to change social injustice in our society. No one should be treated unfairly just because they're themselves.
Deletehttp://college.usatoday.com/2015/03/10/two-oklahoma-students-expelled-for-racist-video/
ReplyDeleteWhen I first viewed this article I didn't think much of it, many people today are still very racist and there isn't much one individual can do to change their opinion. Although, I did continue to read and out of curiosity decided to search up the video. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dG-wq6SJqjU) The video in contrast with the article can make the viewer feel as if they were there on the bus with the other students. All of the students seem to be chanting out racial slurs, but what caught my attention was the smile on the student's faces and the amount of energy they put into it. It surprised me that while discriminating a race , forbidding them to join the fraternity, they could be enjoying it. Also I was confused to why no one spoke up against these students as they threatened to lynch a person of color. While no one spoke up , all choosing to be bystanders of this situation, one girl had the courage to do so. This astonished me because her simple action of recording this video instead of joining in the chant made a huge difference. This video and article showing the consequence of the situation reminded me that it only takes one person to turn a horrible situation into something a little less horrible.
Ashley,
DeleteThis story is very mind blowing, I couldn't believe how cruel those people on the bus were. Then singing the horrible song to then tag the picture of the family and put on youtube is just wrong. what really caught my attention was all the bystanders that were there not doing anything. I feel like that they should of been the bigger person and say something because what was going on in the video was just wrong. The whole situation that was going on was just cruel and horrible.
Ashley,
DeleteThis story was really disturbing. While I read this response I thought it was a video of middle schoolers on a school bus and acting in an immature manor. I open the link and it is young adults acting foolish. What caught my aytentionwas the age group and the lack of maturity. It also wowed me that they were on a bus in public. They looked like they were representing a school but they betrayed their school as a racist community.
David Okeke
ReplyDeleteEnglish H 2
Mrs. Dima
Per 3A
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3001655/Pictured-white-supremacist-caught-shooting-dead-one-person-injuring-five-Arizona-crime-spree.html
A man named Ryan Giroux was caught after 'shooting dead one person and injuring at least five others, the news reporter concluded to call him a "Supremacist". This article shows racism has not yet been diminished and probably never will. Correspondingly it shows how some individuals as Ryan want people to know as long as racism is still in existence it will be show in ways that may mentally or physically hurt someone. Violence is inevitable because there will always be that one individual that strongly feels there should be a superior race.
This issue should be cared by multiple people, not only by African Americans and Whites but by the other races that also exist. This article can be inspiring in the negative way to other "Supremacists" and may motivate them to carry out their own acts of violence. I don't want others to follow on the same unfortunate path as Ryan because it will eventually get you killed or incarcerated. I want my fellow human beings to accept the fact that all races are equal and should be treated equally, and to have the courtesy to respect that.
Okeke, I think you hit the nail right on the head with this response. I couldn't agree more with the part "Correspondingly it shows how some individuals as Ryan want people to know as long as racism is still in existence it will be show in ways that may mentally or physically hurt someone." because I see where you're coming from. I feel the same way on this subject.
DeleteElla Rodems-Boyd
ReplyDeleteB3 Dima
http://www.progress.org/tpr/ignorance-apathy-greed-2/
This article got me thinking a lot about my topic. At first, I wanted to pursue the subject of apathy, but I was worried it was to broad. This article helped me figure out more specifically what I wanted my topic to be. I also found Foldvary's ideas very interesting. The way he breaks down our societal problems almost mathematically is very appealing to me. He speaks about three specific traits that lead to our problems: apathy, greed, and ignorance. I originally wanted to do something only on apathy, but it was useful to me to see apathy in a wider context.
I care about the issue of societal apathy--specifically in America--because I find the psychology behind it very intriguing. I want to understand why and how people (myself included) can simply turn their backs on others, or stop caring about issues that don't affect them. by further exploring this issue, I want to narrow down my topic more and hopefully answer some of my own questions. Iw ant other people to think critically about the way our society functions and the way we perpetuate this apathy by distracting and distancing ourselves from real life issues. Although my topic is still a little unclear to me, I hope to narrow it down and talk about some concrete examples as well as theoretical reasoning.
Ella,
DeleteI think this topic relates very well to my conclusion paragraph about how it is our job as people to address and take offense to injustices even if they do not directly affect us. The topic is interesting. How do you personally think we can solve this issue?
Calcyan Rangolam
ReplyDeleteEnglish 2 Honors:4B
Mr. Loureiro
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2015/01/23/father-of-alleged-snapchat-bullies-loses-his-job/
On January 23, 2015, a father of two teen boys loses his job due to racial slurs over SnapChat towards a Minnesota girl named, Dierdra. After reading this aticle, it made me wonder, does having a certain skin color affect our appearance in today's society? This article made me wonder this because the teen boys were cyber bullying Dierdra for no good reason at all, just because she was an African American. "You're a s--, said one teen, adding the n word." This was one of the abusive comments sent to Dierdra on SnapChat. This specific topic of bullying is a huge issue all over the world where, children, teens, and even adults are being mentally or physically abused by others based on religion, race, etc. Many of those people who experience this get to the point to where they can't handle it and decide to commit suicide. We as a society play as bystanders everyday and watch as situations happen and no one steps in because we don't want to become the next victim, so we pretend we have no idea whats going on. In Dierdra's situation, her parents take a big step in the situation to resolve the issue on SnapChat." I just had to get this off my chest. I just don't know what to do but love my daughter, and I don't want her to end up committing suicide.." Brad Knudson did everything he could possibly do to stop the issue from escalating any further, which was very inspiring to me. After reading this article I realized that discrimination of race still exists, even though we don't notice it as much.
I agree with Calcyn that we act as bystanders. i think because we are simply scared. what would you have done if you were in Diedra's shoes or her fathers' shoes?
DeleteI agree with Calcyan completely and I do think people decide to be bystanders because that sense of fear that "you could be next" takes over so they rather not get involved at all. I think if more people decided not to be bystanders and take action it wouldn't get to the point of suicide and it could be prevented where as in many cases it hasn't.
DeleteI agree with Calcyan because bullying is becoming such a huge issue that everyone seems to be ignoring. We all talk about how it's so terrible and people are commuting suicide and harming themselves over it but no one tries to make a change. Also, there are so many kinds who are being bullied for the color of our skin and I think that is so awful that people are being judged by their appearance and who they are. They can't change what they look like so why judge someone on something they have no control over?
DeleteNathanael J. Matos
ReplyDeleteMr. Loureiro
Period 4B
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vln9D81eO60
Ben Affleck was on “Real Time with Bill Maher” in October of 2014 and decided to speak out against the host and his guest over the topic of Radical Islam. I am not a Muslim, but I do agree with Ben Affleck about how Bill Maher and Sam Harris are generalizing about Islam based off of the actions of a few extremists. Yes, Islam has some bad principles, the fact that you must die if you leave the Islamic faith is one of them, but all religions have their bad principles, the only difference is of who you ask. If you ask a die-hard religious fanatic if there are any principles that are bad in their religion, they will most probably say something along the lines of “Absolutely not! The teachings of (insert deity here) are infallible!” or “Well, there is one or two things that bother me but they’re so minor that they are of no consequence…” But if you ask the same people about flaws in other faiths, they are so quick to try and point out everything wrong with every other faith than theirs, and I strongly believe that will end up contradicting themselves or only succeed in making an ass of themselves rather than actually pointing out the major issues with the religion. So when Sam Harris says that Islam is the motherlode of bad ideas it’s completely understandable that someone (in this case, Ben Affleck) would say “Hey, that’s not being fair to people that believe in Islam’s ideas.”
Ben Affleck is the catalyst that breaks the power of the bystander effect. Once he speaks up the other two men sitting to his right (Nicholas Kristof and Michael Steele) speak up too. And Ben has a point about the billion people that practice and worship Islam that aren’t killing people that just want to go to school, and eat a sandwich, and live their life. By Bill and Sam’s statements, they are saying that the vast majority of those people are, just because they are Moslem, extremists and radicals. I do understand how they could fall for this misconception though, because the sad truth of the world is that despicable actions often speak louder than the good ones. That’s why it seems like you only ever hear about radical Moslem groups killing people or defacing historical artifacts; because it’s easier to say “These people are up to no good again. Their despicable actions…” blah-blah-blah. It’s easier to talk about people like ISIS and say that they are awful, terrible, despicable, evil, hateful, disturbing, crazy, people that should be removed from the world than it is to talk about the average person living under jihadist rule that just wants to live their life devoted to Allah, follow the teachings of Muhammad, and eat a sandwich (as well as other things, but you get my point). The thing about this that confuses me about this is that these are liberals saying these bigoted and ignorant things when they are supposed to be people that believe in free speech and freedom of religion. It just seems hypocritical (and I know what it’s like to be a hypocrite).
The reason I decided to write about this is because I find it interesting that someone with a high social status like Ben Affleck has made some sort of news that isn’t just another dumb celebrity doing something stupid or getting arrested. He actually was defending something, not because he’s a Moslem (he was raised Episcopalian, but currently generalizes his faith as “Western Christian Spirituality”), but because he honestly believes that Bill Maher and Sam Harris were spreading bigotry.
Willow M. Giannotti-Garlinghouse
DeleteA3 English II honors
Dima
Nathaneal, I appreciate your stance on this topic. So many people will blame an entire demographic for the flaws of a few, and the propagandist fear of Islam in our country drives this. What you wrote about how it's easier to blame all of Islam for the crimes of a radical few struck a chord with me, it seems many groups are treated in the same way, as if a few dozen people can account for thousands. This feeds into racism and stereotyping; saying that all muslims are extremist, or hate women and gay people. Where else have you seen this sort of narrow-minded approach to an entire demographic?
English 2 honors
ReplyDeleteDima
3A
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YGjz5SV_Qk
This video made me think that we, as individuals, have the power to stop bullying worldwide. We just need to speak up and voice our opinions. If we see an innocent kid getting bullied, 9 times out of 10 we would just pass on by. This number needs to be increase vastly because in the video it quotes, "250,000 teens report being bullied every month, and that's just those who report it. Imagine how many more kids don't report it because they're too afraid. Well we have a mouth for a reason so if you are a victim you need to tell someone, even if you're not a victim you need to tell. This is a very important issue to me because i think everybody is equal and that nobody should have to face this type of cruelty. I hope people read my post and make moves if they see bullying.
Tino,
DeleteI am happy to see you are addressing-through writing- the subject of bullying, especially the connection between bullying and cruelty and our need to take action against it.
Verbal bullying-especially-is an insidious problem, mostly because a lot of people do not see it as a threatening issue, and thus, do not intervene. It is easier to pretend we did not hear a belittling joke or an insulting remark or to brush off an offensive online comment on our Instagram page because it is not "our business". The anonymity of the online space is particularly appealing for both perpetrators (they could hide their identities or fear behind a screen) and bystanders (they could pretend they did not "see" the comment).
Verbal bullying is aggression and it often stems from the aggressor's own fears and insecurities. It creates a cycle of violence that is toxic and difficult to break.
The Key&Peele video (see link below) gets at this idea: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUvFeyGxaaU
Language is a powerful tool. I hope more of us are becoming more aware of how we use our words every day-and not just to gain power or to persuade others to do things for us-but also to help and encourage one another and to stop others who chose to do otherwise.
I totally agree with Santino. I agree because people do keep from helping others out of being afraid. I think that Santino tells the real issue of people needing help and people not providing that help even when they can help in the right way. I do have a question though, what ways do you think you can help people want to help others in situations like this?
DeleteI also agree with Tino. I believe everyone should have the power to stop bullying, or maybe even prevent it from happening so often. If you see someone getting bullied, you should put a stop to it, even if your afraid to help defend that person because that will only make you a better person. Bullying is a problem that many cannot live without but has to be ended.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteI agree with Tino. I believe that everyone was created equally, no matter our skin color, race, gender, etc. We are all human beings, no one is inferior or superior than anybody else. I also agree with you that we should all speak up, but sometimes we don't speak up because we are afraid of what society is going to think of us, we don't want them to be calling us a snitch or they might even take it further and start bullying us just for speaking up. Another thing I noticed in the video is that they told the school and they didn't take it seriously, all that teachers really do is just tell you to separate from them, that's all they don't really do anything. Schools should set more rules for the teachers on preventing bullying.
DeleteI agree with Tino that more people need to speak up about bullying. Yes if someone sees another being bullied they should try to intervene and stop it. But it's also hard for some people to speak up. It's not just as easy as it sounds. And if your a victim it's even harder because you don't want people to know what you are going through. It could be embarrassing for you to tell someone. Bullying is a serious issue and in my opinion is not a very easy thing to be fixed.
DeleteEva Knaggs
ReplyDelete22 March
Loureiro B4
http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2015/03/20/one-nation-under-allah-fury-after-school-recites-pledge-in-arabic/?intcmp=latestnews
http://www.bbc.com/news/31989874
The United States of America has a huge and rapidly expanding problem: Islamophobia. Islamophobia is “A hatred or fear of Islam or Muslims, especially when feared as a political force.” With extremist groups such as Boko Haram (pejoratively translated as “Western Education is Sin”), and the group commonly known to the U.S. as ISIS (Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) in the international spotlight for performing violent and horrific acts of terrorism aimed primarily against Western countries and those who oppose their legitimacy and interpretation of Islam, it is easy for those who are uneducated or misinformed to jump to conclusions about Islam as a religion and the Muslims who follow it as a people.
Violence against Muslims in America is growing [see the recent Chapel Hill shootings of two recent Muslim graduates, a so called “parking dispute” in which three Hijabis were killed], as are prejudiced attitudes. From our previous English unit dealing with levels of hate and the “hate pyramid” diagram, we have seen that in order for hate to reach a level of violence against someone, there has to be a prejudiced base present. This article, which I originally found linked to Fox News’ twitter and later on the BBC’s website (relatively unbiased News is much more pleasant to read), made me angry to the point where I reached out to the schools student body president. I told him that I and many others support his decision to read the Pledge in Arabic and appreciate his valour in standing by his decision publicly after the vast amount of complaints and comments along the lines of “bad choice, you jihadi bastard” that he received. The school had read the pledge in a different language every day for the past week, as an attempt by the language department to celebrate the myriads of cultures present in America. There had been no outcry for any other language used, however, when a natively speaking student read the pledge in Arabic, students protested by shouting and sitting down, and later taking to social media and getting their parents to complain to the school, because there is quite clearly no way for any conservative youth to sit down and have an intelligent discussion about a quite clearly bigoted issue they have without fleeing to Mum and Dad to defend their opinions and pat their heads as they’re fed sympathy off of a silver spoon for being exposed to something as horrific and traumatizing as the -brace yourself- Arabic language. To make the matter even more horrifying, the school district later issued “an apology to any students, staff or community members who found this activity disrespectful" [BBC.com]. Not all Arabic speakers are Muslim, just as not all English speakers are Christian, and not all Hebrew speakers are Jewish. This situation is parallel to “It is offensive to me to hear the pledge spoken by someone with a lisp because our country should not be degraded by having people pledge their allegiance with such poor pronunciation.” Going even further, The United States of America does not have an official language. So, while many Xenophobic among us are running around horrified at our influx of Non-English speaking friends moving into the 50 states, they may want to pause and remember that the language they speak is not registered as official or required. All are welcome here.
[CONTINUED]
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteEva Knaggs
ReplyDelete22 March
Loureiro B4
[CONTINUED]
Focusing on the implication of this incident and what is shows on a broader scale, it is beyond safe to state that Islamophobia is a growing issue in the United States. This hatred of the Muslim population is fueled by the, often times only, violent “Muslim” beheadings, suicide bombings, and kidnappings carried out by extremists, displayed in media. This is not stating that these horrific incidents should not be reported; they are absolutely critical in fighting these groups. However, while so many Americans are being exposed to these reports and only these reports, they are not being exposed to what the real and peaceful Islam that so many Muslims practice is. They do not take it upon themselves. Here is the all too little believed fact about Islam: ISLAMIC EXTREMISM IS NOT ISLAM. ISLAMIC EXTREMISM IS NOT ISLAM. ISLAMIC EXTREMISM IS NOT ISLAM. The Muslim community has repeatedly and publicly discredited extremist groups as not Islam. Just as extremist actions done by Christians ARE NOT CHRISTIANITY. Just like how extremist actions done by Jews ARE NOT JUDAISM. These actions are radical, inhuman, and absolutely unacceptable, and are a result of brainwashing, hate, a desire for control and political/ cultural power, and misinterpretation. Religion is used as a justification for their cause (Islamic extremists are predominantly seeking political and geographical power). Their minority sentiments and views are not shared with the majority of those following their religion.
I see lack of awareness and sensitivity about Islam in school, where in Chemistry the other day a girl put her scarf around her head Hijab style and asked the boy next to her if “he would still talk to her if she wore this.” There are other incidents that I will not elaborate on, but undeniably many students have claimed false statements or made insensitive remarks against Islam at Cross.
Conclusively, There are four main points that contribute to Islamophobia in schools and in the U.S. as a whole. A. Lack of exposure to the Islamic religion. B. Lack of education about Islam. C. Views of Islam drawn as conclusions from extremist actions, and D. Acceptance/ non-objection to Islamophobic remarks/ actions. I am not Muslim. I do not speak Arabic, I do not refer to God as Allah as Arabic is not my native language, and I do not worship in mosque on Friday. Although I have never been the victim of Islamophobic remark or action, I take offense to it. Just as I am not a young black male, yet I sure as hell take offense to all too common Ferguson-like incidents. Just because an issue does not affect you directly does not mean that it is okay to not take offense to it, which is the equivalent of accepting it. Acceptance perpetuates issues. This is your responsibility: to fight injustices against any and every people. Slavery was an institution in the United States. Racism is STILL an institution in the United States; so is sexism. My Muslim friends have just as much of a right to worship, to walk around not in fear for their safety, to wear Hijab, and to be respected as my Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist, and Atheist friends do to their individualized freedoms and rights.
[END]
Nathanael J. Matos
DeleteMr. Loureiro
Period 4B
Eva,
First, I’d like to commend you for taking the time to write a novel for your English homework, well done. Second, I have to say that I agree with pretty much everything you said. One of the problems with our society today is that people seem to be afraid of anything they don’t understand. So rather than admitting their ignorance or taking the time to learn about the issue then form well-educated opinions (but that would be the smart thing to do and we know that not everybody has a developed concept of common sense) they either try to claim they know what they are talking about or completely make an ass of themselves by spewing out bigoted nonsense they probably heard someone smarter than them say. Yes, radical Moslem extremists are bad. But so are radical Christian extremists. And radical Jewish extremists. And radical Atheist extremists. So is every other extremist group that kills and causes fear in the name of a specific deity or doctrine. I touched on this in my post (somewhere above), but just because someone doesn’t like it when you say offensive things, doesn’t mean you are the targeted group (like you, I am not a Moslem). Sure, if someone that says something that is targeted towards latinos and latinas, I will most certainly get offended (I am of both Puerto Rican and Guatemalan descent), but that doesn’t mean I can’t defend people that are asian or disabled or Moslem (I am none of these). However, I would like to pose this: the rampancy of Islamophobia is our fault as a country. The U.S. has almost painted a picture of all Moslems being Jihadists that it’s almost understandable that people actually believe that bull. I’m not justifying it, I’m just saying that some of us are swayed by propaganda more easily than others. But in the end it’s our fault. This country hasn’t done much to try and stop the spread of Islamophobia. So my question to you is this: “How do we educate the masses so that they are more well informed about serious topics-- not just Islamophobia?” My answer is that we can’t. We simply can’t. There will always be someone that will be an ass for the sake of being an ass (I would know; I am guilty of it).
I agree with you so much on how this country really does have Islamophobia. With all the things that are happening, the US really has become to fearful of Islam. ISIS and Boko Haram does not explain Islam and it should not be viewed that way. We are giving Islam such a negative reputation in this country that others start to feel uncomfortable with it. That article really just shows how our country is making public schools center Christianity as the top tier religion, while Islam and others are pushed to the side. We definitely don't have enough exposure to other religions and we should learn to become more tolerable. Our country is full of immigrants and Christianity definitely wasn't known until it was brought over by the Europeans and enforced onto the Natives. I am Buddhist and I am always feeling excluded from many social groups just because my religion is different from others. I never felt comfortable with saying the pledge but you don't see me running to my mom and complaining about it.
DeleteJustin Gomez-Stafford
ReplyDeleteEnglish 2 Honors
Mr. Louriero
3-22-15
Topic: Heterosexism
Link: https://vimeo.com/11165297
The people in this video talked about heterosexual privilege and how it affects people. Heterosexual privilege is where a straight person could do a certain thing and not get persecuted for it but if a homosexual person had done it there would be hundreds of perceptions. This got me thinking that there truly is a double standard for sexuality and it affects people greatly. This opened my eyes to how badly things are and that not everything is what it seems. This issue is very important to me because I have felt the persecution of being gay and it really does have a huge effect on people. You feel like you can't have a normal life because you're different and that you're always on a double standard. I'm hoping that I can learn about how things are the way they are and if there is anything that can be done to help or change these horrible issues which make it super hard to live, especially as a homosexual. I'm hoping that people see how big of an issue it is to have this topic, a topic that reaches federal and judicial levels in approval. I just want things to be sorted out because it does is make life difficult to live in society, as a homosexual.
P.S. I pressed the wrong thing and my first response got deleted so I'm alittle upset which makes this new repsponce a tad dreary.
Charlie Orr
ReplyDeleteEnglish 2 Honors
Mrs. Dima
http://laist.com/2014/07/16/high_school_student_committed_suici.php
After reading this article I can confirm that the spreading of hate is a huge problem and is made tremendously easy with the technology and media we have today. After being caught and filmed in the men’s bathroom at his high school, Matthew Burdette took his own life a mere two weeks later. In this articles it mentions that after being posted on Snapchat and Vine, the video went viral around the school district and Matthew was then, “Mercilessly bullied.” I’m not blaming social media for the death of this boy, but it does make situations like these very easy to create. Hate like this is spread throughout high schools all the time without social media. Kids often throw the feelings of others to the wayside in their own pursuit of popularity or even possibly to cover up their insecurities. This article brings light to one of the most extreme cases of high school hate, and just how much it can affect one’s life.
While reading this article, one question kept coming up—why? Why would the kid who took the video, post it on social media, what does he benefit? Being a student in high school, I experience minor versions of this almost daily. Some person always has a negative thing to say about someone else, but why say these bad things. Why turn your personal vendetta into a communal hate for that person, when he/she has not done anything bad to those people. In some cases, like in this article, the individual being gossiped about hasn’t done anything bad at all. In this case I’m even more boggled as to why someone would share this information with others. There is no revenge or personal connection in mind. Could it be that they just gain satisfaction from seeing others suffer, that they are inherently evil? Could they possibly trying to lift the spotlight off themselves and place it on another? There are so many possibilities, and in all of them spreading hate of others seems like the best way to fix it, which I think is appalling. No teenager should receive any benefits from spreading hate of an individual or group of people.
Charlie, your post caught my attention because many aspects of your topic are similar to mine, more specifically when you mention that we gain "satisfaction from seeing others suffer." I think it's so sad that we view others' misfortunes as entertainment. Perhaps we feel better about ourselves when others have it worse. I also agree that sharing something private on social media doesn't seem like such a big deal when it's not you in the spotlight.
DeleteKayla Chance
ReplyDeleteEnglish 2 Honors
Mr.L
https://youtu.be/5b0ZQnVfMO8
In this video, it consist of two actors. One black, one white. The black man is a store worker and the white man is a costumer. The store sells urban wear and the worker acts to not approve of the white costumer wanting to dress like this. Throughout the video, bystanders find it funny when the worker makes comments like "you're too white for that" or "wearing this won't make you any blacker." What surprised me is that the younger costumer says something but the older ones just laugh. The younger costumer says something along the lines of "you can't knock his hustle, let him wear what he wants to wear." The younger costumer then pulls the worker to the side and gives him some advice of acting nicer to the costumers. The camera men come out and explain to the wise teen that he was on a show. The teen then explains to why he stood up for the man and why he believes in letting this white man dressing freely.
NoraidaSantana
ReplyDeleteEnglish 2 Honors
Mr. Loureiro
http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/grade-point/wp/2015/03/09/with-their-fraternity-closed-oklahoma-universitys-sigma-alpha-epsilon-members-move-out/
In this article it talks about how a Fraternity in Oklahoma has closed down after a racist video of students chanting an offensive song was released involving the members of the Fraternity. I chose this article because when I first heard the story I could not believe how racist people could still be. Some of the things said in the video attached to the article were really offensive, especially to people of color. The students were chanting things like "You can hang em from a tree" and "There will never be n----- at SAE." These lyrics made me feel uncomfortable and disgusted. The university handled the situation well by shutting down the chapter and kicking these students out, it's embarrassing to know these ate your students. I think I feel so deeply about this issue of racism because I dislike how some people in America still view colored people as garbage. This is supposed to be a changing country but things like this seem to keep that from happening. I'm hoping that people would open their eyes and see that America is still pretty racist and we need change to happen.
This story has been getting a lot of attention from the media lately. Earlier today I was looking at these videos, and one that caught my attention was about the SAE "house mom" who had uploaded a video of herself saying racial slurs on Vine, and then when she was asked to talk about what happened of the bus, she said she was appalled and those were not the boys she knew when they were there. This just made me wonder about what it was really like in that house, and her reaction also seemed very suspicious to me. I also saw another video about the cook at SAE who was put out on the streets because he lost his job at the frat house (due to it being shut down) and within two days , almost $40,000 was raised for him. I just thought that we remarkable. I also agree with you about how well the university responded to this video, and as well as how that racism is a serious problem in todays society and it needs to be changed.
DeleteZiomaly Rodriguez
ReplyDeletePeriod 3B
3/22/15
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=pJsiAz9qCmM
This video was about how homeless people get treated in America vs. How they get treated in Canada. My thoughts on this video was very surprising because the student who was doing an experiment and who was acting like a homeless guy, did not receive nothing at all in the US. But when he went to Canada he received lots of money from people. This shows how united we are in America. Everyone was walking by him as if he was nothing.Not even a human. I don't normally think of this situation very often. When I watched this video, I also noticed that today my dad and I drove passed a homeless person. I thought it was awful just driving past. But if I have money to give, I would've gave it to the homeless guy. My parents taught me to always give more than what you receive. So I was wondering why wasn't my dad giving? Was it because he couldn't afford to give away money? Because he's not rich but he's not poor either. But I have a open mind about this situation. People tend to lie about who they are. They would even lie about being homeless and use the money for unnecessary items. My mother gave a homeless woman money in downtown. The next week when I was in downtown, the same woman came out of a store with a lot of bags and furniture, and new clothes on. It just shows people will lie about who they are, just for money. So I really don't know what to say about this situation, because of my personal experience. I do feel bad for homeless people, but which ones are really homeless? You can never tell in America.
I completely agree with you in this situation. you never know now in days who really is homeless and who is not. One time my mother gave a dollar to a homeless guy only to find out that later that weekend he purchased some drugs. Which proves you cant trust no one in this world. for those who are truthful I feel bad and I pray one day they can get their life together, but for those who lie, they will get their karma and I hope they learn. great connections to your personal experience by the way. I wonder why Canada is more willing to give money to those homeless people rather than we are here in the U.S?
DeleteMarina Gonzalez
ReplyDeleteEnglish 2 Honors
Ms. Dima (3A)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmfV616ZeJ4
This video made me think about how acceptance in society, your personal confidence and the need to be liked can start to be affected in your own home before society impacts it further. In Leelah’s situation her own parents didn't except her for her desire to be a transgender girl. They were the first people to break her confidence and make her feel alone in the world when they should have been the first people to try and help her. They started Leelah’s feelings of loneliness and everyone else in her school besides her friends added to it by bullying her because of her looks. It just makes me think that you should never ridicule or make fun of people because you never know what’s going on in their own personal home situations and you could just be making it worse. In Leelah’s case these horrible actions lead her to suicide because she thought it was the only way out. What was not included in the video was that Leelahs parents took away any technology she had that would keep her in touch with her friends (the only ones who accepted her) and they made her go to church which had strong views about gender and sexual orientation.
This video brings up questions in my mind like why do people feel the need to bully others just because they’re different? Why do parents think it’s okay to criticize their own child just because they’re not what they expected or don’t live up to the standards that they have made? I think both other children and parents ability to shrink someone down to make them seem like they don’t compare or will never be good enough is disgustingly wrong, but I think if you’re a parent doing this to your own child I personally think it’s even worse. Parents, like it’s said in the video, are supposed to love their child unconditionally and I think if you don’t do that you’re just adding onto the blows and harsh words they will receive from others in the future. I just want any parent or child to think about their actions before proceeding with them and actually learn something from this video.
Saige Taylor
Delete3/24/15
Mrs. Dima
English honors 2: A3
I can agree with Marina when she said, “your personal confidence and the need to be liked can start to be affected in your own home before society impacts it further.” This is important because I think that parents should have a positive impact on their children even if their choices come off negative. This will help children face society. Everybody needs a support system and I think that the best people to have it with is from your family. I feel like if my family doesn't have my back with my decisions then I would be confused in hard times.
Ariana Oeung
ReplyDeleteMrs. Dima 3B
http://wtnh.com/2015/03/22/danbury-man-arrested-for-sexually-abusing-9-year-olds/
There are so many things wrong with this action taken by this man. First it is very disturbing as well as disgusting to know that there are older nasty men, as well as females, who in their own heart do not care and actually think its okay to sexually abuse a young child. I question the world on how people be okay with sexually abusing an innocent growing child. Children should not be exposed to anything like that ever because that can really traumatize their own life and often the kids stay silent which makes it even worse because then, depending on how long the crime goes own, the children stay with that in their minds. Unfortunately it’s not only kids who get sexually abused but it is anyone no matter what your age is. If any sexual action is done to a person it should be consensual and wanted, not forced. Referring to the question, “Do we-as individuals-have a responsibility to address them?” I believe in cases like this and many others, you do because it can be a danger to your life and no child or person should go through such a thing. Its both nasty and wrong to commit such an action and find it okay. I care about this issue because there are so many people in the world who have been sexually abused and have kept quiet about it because they are afraid and I think everyone should defend themselves before its too late. I know that people are just afraid but its not okay to keep something like that with you forever. Those people who do cruel things need to be stopped and punished. And to those who know if someone is being abused in that way, you should not be a bystander but instead you should tell someone because if that was you, you would want help. No one should have that feeling of helplessness.
Alyssa Pagan H
ReplyDeleteMs.Dima 3B
http://ecowatch.com/2014/05/05/report-chemical-disasters-environmental-injustice/
Being a more passive social injustice this article explains how often minorities and low income residents are taken advantage of. These groups tend to live near toxic chemical zones known as fence line zones. Being exposed to these harsh chemical plants can cause many health problems including cancer. The article mentions how “People of color communities are treated as if they are disposable human beings,” Roberts continues. “This is environmental injustice and racism.” This shows how when some people can not afford certain opportunities are stuck in a position where they cannot better themselves social injustice may fall upon them simply because they cannot get out of the situation they’re in. Companies take advantage of these communities, knowing these families cannot avoid the health risks. I believe we as individuals are responsible for out chemical output for not only is it hurting the environment it directly can cause harm to those forced to live nearby. This issue caught my interest after learning about the IAEA or international atomic energy agency which deals with atomic chemical production and legislation. On a more common domestic level the idea of these fence line zones that create direct danger to those living on their premises caught my attention. With large corporations in control often people being taken advantage by them have no choices but to abide to the situation they’re placed in. This issues is important since it it potentially quite dangerous and hurts those of low income and wage. The article states how “Some activists accuse companies of intentionally locating their chemical plants in poor communities because they know the residents don’t have the resources to put up a fight.” This act of injustice reflects negligence to people’s health by taking advantage of their current situation.
Alyssa I love how original and refreshing this was. The topic has not been explored on the blog yet, and raises a lot of questions about other ways in which corporations may be taking advantage of those who are not able to prevent them from doing so. Connecting it to the IAEA was a great move. (#47traitors) Very insightful.
DeleteI think that in today’s society, with all the huge social injustices happening, small ones like this tend to be over looked by the majority of people. I think, that although the big ones do deserve attention, the small ones like this do also and it was a great idea to find one like this.
DeleteCarlos Flores
ReplyDeleteEnglish 2 Honors
Mrs.Dima
http://wtnh.com/2015/03/16/man-arrested-for-home-invasion-kidnapping/
This is an article on how a man basically kidnapped his ex wife.After reading this article it really made me think deeper into social injustice. As you view different acts of social injustices it just gives you a wider point of view and lets you explore deeper into your specific case. After viewing this case which is on much higher scale in which of the one I am studying, the subject just irritates me in large scale the level of hate is critical. I hate the major scale of harassment to human to human. We have people out their protesting for abortion an etc but just to relize that all that adds up to the end to muder. Imagine a world without killing a world with peace a world of ours.
Christopher Rojas
ReplyDeleteEnglish 2 Honors
Mr. Loureiro
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/05/21/hispanics-face-most-discr_n_583538.html
According to the article, an associated Press-Univision Poll found that 61 percent of people overall said Hispanics face significant discrimination. As well as an estimated 12 million illegal immigrants are settled in the U.S. Mexicans are targeted the most in discrimination against illegal immigration due to their large population in the U.S. Matilde Martinez, a Puerto Rican-born New Yorker, said she believes Mexican immigrants face much mistreatment as she was doing the poll. In addition, she was also interview and stated "These people come to work and they do work that the Americans won't do for the little pay they get." She was trying to state a very good point in saying that Mexicans do the most painful work at their job for the minimum wage, jobs that most people aren't willing to do. As long as they have a job to maintain themselves, they are satisfied.
The reason in which why I am choosing to write about this issue that is related to social injustice is because I sometimes wonder if the discrimination against hispanics will ever stop or occur less. In the article, Raymond Angulo, 66, a Mexican-born U.S. citizen and retiree from Pico Rivera, Calif. was interviewed and stated, "It's gotten somewhat better, but it's still there. I feel like it's never going away." Some people wish that hopefully someday discrimination will stop occurring, but in reality, we aren't sure what will happen. According to the article,it states, attention on whether Latinos face unfair treatment has intensified since last month, when Arizona enacted a law requiring local police to ascertain the citizenship of people they suspect of being in the U.S. illegally. How must it feel being discriminated by your way of being in society? In other words, looking like a hispanic person who seems to be an illegal immigrant. What I'm hoping to discover on this issue is the difference between being legally and illegally in a country. Aren't most of us technically illegally in some countries? No human being should discrimination whether being illegal or not, we're all the same.
SungMi Johnson
ReplyDeleteMrs. Dima
Period 3B
http://www.nhregister.com/general-news/20150318/video-new-haven-girl-15-injured-during-arrest-police-launch-probe
From the numerous fights I have witnessed in school over the years, I have have always remembered people desperately trying to watch and witness them in the most convenient ways possible. The recent incident in New Haven during the St. Patrick's Day parade really highlighted the fact that we just LOVE to watch crazy violent situations, as if they're entertainment. While the video of the fifteen year old girl being slammed by police created major racial related controversies, I couldn't help but notice all the people on the busy streets of New Haven that simply watched and recorded this happen, as if it was something to show to friends for fun. From past experiences, I can recall students jumping over lunch tables, and pushing and shoving to see brutal fights between other students. To see people doubled over in laughter because of this violence has really opened my eyes, but also made me question why we, including myself, choose to watch things like this. I believe that we see fights as something out of the ordinary. Unfortunately, perhaps out of complete boredom, we get excited when we see violence and injustice, as if they will provide us with something else to talk about and share. The severity of the situation becomes extraordinary, or as we translate it, a reason to giggle and laugh and stare as if we've just watched an unbelievable plot twist in a movie. In a way, my topic is about bystanding. We choose to watch social injustice, rather than act upon it. Perhaps even worse than a bystander who ignores a situation is a bystander who watches a situation like entertainment.
I agree when you said we love to watch them as entertainment. Many people can't understand that its not correct but instead run to the violence and we encourage it more than we encourage the truth and respect. Also when people ask others for advice many of them say "fight her" or "fight him" instead of actually helping them to ignore the problem.
DeleteThe issue Sung Mi referenced the the police and the fifteen year old girl is a major act of injustice, it seems like deliberate police brutality. We grow so use to hearing these things that sometimes they don’t register as something horrific and unjust. As sung Mi said issues like this are viewed as entertainment. They have become so common and normal that not only are they not recognized as unjust but they are viewed and shown around. The fact that this person was a young adolescent is unbelievable yet at the same time we are so use to these acts of violence. I respect the points Sung Mi mentioned and found her response quite insightful but when she mentions how we view fights or just even violence in general as out of the ordinary I believe we have conditioned ourselves to view it as common, these events no longer surprise us in the way they should. Though Sung Mi is right in the way she explains our reaction people use violence as a means of entertainment. I like how Sung Mi connects it to an act of by standing because it is a form of by standing where action is still being made but in this case not to help the situation but rather hurt the victim more by spreading around news of the incident in a non informative joking way.
DeleteI think that your completely right, why sit there and be a bystander and laugh at the situation. I also watched the video and I see people taking out there phones and watching instead of helping at least. the person who was close up recording was just there for entertainment and I think that wrong, we shouldn't be bystanders or worst, being a bystander and enjoying the situation.
DeleteI really like what you said and as I was reading it I thought of the scene from Night where the Germans are throwing bread into the trains carrying the Jews, enjoying the chaos that it caused. Mrs. Dima brought this up one day in class, but it really goes to show just how little we have changed. We know of these bad things that have happened in the past, and yet we do not choose to learn from them.
DeleteJavier Roman
ReplyDeletePeriod 3A
3/22/15
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/08/13/us/ferguson-missouri-town-under-siege-after-police-shooting.html?_r=0
This article is just one of the many incidents that occurred in Ferguson, Missouri. An 18 year old unarmed black teen was shot and killed by officer Darren Wilson, the article says that he stole some cigarettes from a liquor store and was caught on tape. After reading the article, my first thoughts about it were why was he killed over cigarettes or maybe this could be something greater than just some cigarette. Ferguson has some history with racism and an injustice police force that targets African American residents. I think this is absurd, this has happened already numerous times and caused riots and protests and still nobody has done nothing until now when its getting serious. What really irritated me was that the officer wasn't charged with anything, not even a civil rights violation charge. How would you feel if you were assaulted because you were from a different race? all I'm saying is that we need to open our eyes and not be bystanders and address problems like racism.
Javier, i totally agree on your point of view. Its just crazy to see that someone can be killed over some $7.00 cigeretts. Thats is just crazy, what is our world coming to, murder without punishment,noway. In your response i like how you provide backround knowledge it helps the reader understand the concept and work there way through the story.
DeleteAlerys Malpica
ReplyDeleteDina 3B
March 22
http://ellianasmith.weebly.com/current-events.html
This article talks about slavery. Its shocking to me and perhaps to others to realize that slavery actually still exists in certain places. There are children who are being held by priests just because they decide too. These are called Trokosi Slaves in the country of Ghana. The priest have held them captive to "appease the Gods". This works as a social injustice because obviously people know about it enough to write an article about it, but decide to do nothing. We are becoming bystanders in this generation thinking that nothing bad ever happens because we get used to violence and used to discrimination. When one person actually stand up, that's when competition starts. What I mean by competition is that "who could hide the injustice better." People start pretending its not there because its not them, well that's not good enough, actually do something about it, like make a petition. We, as an entire population of human race are ignoring what's true and deciding to follow and be entertained by what's wrong.
Clio Bate
ReplyDeleteEnglish 2 Honors
Loureiro
3/22/15
http://www.workforce.com/articles/wal-mart-settles-employee-s-eeoc-disability-discrimination-lawsuit-for-50-000
This article is about a Wal-Mart employee who was fired due to her disability. She took a medical leave because of her cerebral palsy, and instead of allowing her to return after her break, Wal-Mart fired her. This is an example of social injustice, because Wal-Mart was discriminating against her because of her disability, which is not fair, nor is it right. “Arney had shown the store manager a note from her doctor requesting an accommodation involving periodic breaks off her feet, but the manager refused to return her to her job and instead demanded that she obtain a medical release with no restrictions” This manager treated her unjustly. Is is not okay to deny someone their rights, and fire them over something they cannot control like a disability. Asking for periodic breaks due to a medical condition is a completely reasonable request, and the fact that the manager, not only wouldn’t accommodate her, but her told her to get get another medical release without any restrictions. The manager was putting her health at risk. “The EEOC alleges that the medical restriction could have easily been accommodated by the giant retailer. In fact, had the employer inquired further, it would have learned that her need for accommodation was temporary," Occurrences like these are unacceptable. It is not okay to fire someone because of their gender, race, or disability. They cannot control any of these factors. Someone who is disabled should have the same opportunities that someone who isn’t has. I care about this subject because I think everyone should have the same opportunities regardless, and it makes me mad when I see someone being denied those opportunities. I hope others will see that people who are disabled should be treated the way everyone else is, and should be treated fairly according to their medical condition. It should not be denied to them.
Lishana Daniel
Delete3/23/15
Dima 3B
English 2 Honors
I absolutely agree with what you wrote about how the women with cerebral palsy wanted a periodic break and they did not allow it so they fired her.The manager was very unfair to fire her because of her disability, and that does show social justice because like you said Wal-Mart was discriminating against her because of her disability.
Jasmine Godwin
ReplyDeletePeriod 3A Dima
https://youtu.be/dB_xuUtIoNA
I recently watched an episode of Dr. Phil and it was about Racism but more specifically the University of Oklahoma. There has been a video going around showing members of the fraternity Sigma Apse Epsilon (SAE) saying a very hurtful and racial chant about African Americans. After watching this short video clip I began to think why are people so ignorant? I honestly don’t understand how people could be so foolish and ill-mannered .To post a video about hanging blacks from a tree is not in any way shape or form funny to me. Yet these men were laughing and chanting it like it was one of their favorite childhood songs. This also made me realize racism is alive and well today. It’s crazy to think that in 2015 people still think its okay to do things like what those students did. For me being an African American myself it’s kind of scary to know I live in a nation where people still hate me not because, of my personality or what I believe in . But simply because of the fact that I am black. I care about this issue because; to me it just isn’t right. To discriminate against a certain group of people from something they cannot control is insane. I don’t think it is okay for that to go on. We and I say we meaning everybody, not just a specific group. WE all need to do everything in our power to come together as one and stop discrimination.
People need to step up and make a change. Or else we will forever be stuck in the past. If you know better you do better, something has to be done.
Lishana Daniel
ReplyDelete3/22/2015
Mrs.Dima 3B
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/connecticut-teen-committed-suicide-bullied-years-friends-article-1.1444213
In September of 2013, a fifteen year old boy killed himself with a shotgun after enduring being bullied for many years.The kids hit him against the lockers and the administrator did not do anything about it.After many years of being bullied he finally imploded by killing himself in his bedroom with a shotgun.This text made me think about how society is so inconsiderate of peoples feelings.Especially to those who are very sensitive being bullied had a very big impact on his life because he says the following “I notice if I sound sad I’m normal and if I act happy, cheerful, and 'normal' there is a high chance that I will try to poison myself, cut myself, commit suicide, or jump in front of a truck :)" he wrote on July 9.This topic came to mind for social justice because feel like this is a large part of social justice.I say this because when you look at the topic people chose for their social justice a good amount is bullying.Another reason I chose this topic is because I have seen many of my friends go through bullying and I have actual experience in the matter, so I can connect with the topic.By others seeing this I want people to know the bullying is a very serious issue in this society. Bullying starts with hurtful remarks it may be funny to the person but not the victim.
Ni Lam
ReplyDeleteMrs. Dima 3B
http://news.yahoo.com/fbi-probing-death-black-man-hanging-tree-mississippi-053150192.html
This particular article talks about racism and how it still exists today. 54 year old, Otis Byrd, was found hanging from a tree in Mississippi. This article really got me thinking about how cruel acts still exist today because of our prejudice views of others. Many people say that racism was a thing of the past and that we should get over it. Forgive and forget, they say, but they don’t realize that racism is still very alive today. Lynching was a way to kill blacks, and the fact that you still see these types of acts in our time today, means that racism still exists. “The Mississippi chapter of the NAACP has called for a swift and thorough federal investigation into Byrd's death, saying its circumstances raised fears it may have been a racially motivated hate crime.” Race plays such a huge role in people’s lives. It’s as if one can’t be comfortable in their skin and that if they can’t conform to the ideal skin tone, they are lesser than others. We as individuals need to start teaching the younger generation not to hate one because of the color of their skin. If we continue to judge each other based on the color of our skin, it’ll naturally cause a bigger rift between us. Older generations need to realize that those conservative ways of thinking aren’t going to get us anywhere. We are developing and advancing rapidly and if we don’t start loving one another, we’ll end up being the ones that kill each other of this Earth. I chose this article because race plays a huge role in my life. Growing up as an Asian American I’ve experienced times where there have been racial slurs thrown at me. It’s hard and I just can’t imagine how horrible it must have been back then. I care about this issue because I don’t want to have to live in a world where I have to worry about feeling lesser because of the color of my skin. I want to be able to feel safe to have my kids living on this Earth, where everyone accepts one another, not one where I have to always be afraid as to whether or not my child would be accepted by society. I hope to find more positive news about this issue and what we are trying to do to stop racism from continue to unravel. I hope others will be able to agree or realize that racism still plays a huge part of our society today. It’s still here and it won’t leave unless we do something about it.
Victor Coto
ReplyDeleteMr.L
4B
http://kdvr.com/2014/04/29/12-year-olds-family-says-bullying-at-school-caused-her-to-commit-suicide/
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2015/03/22/1-3-boys-who-assaulted-california-teen-before-her-suicide-settles-wrongful/
http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2014/04/06/study-sexual-harassment-frequent-among-middle-school-students
The 'Social Injustice' topic that chose to talk about is a very serious topic which has made a wide appearance in our modern society now more than ever; Bullying. Bullying has become such a problem in the lives of hundreds of teens in our nation. Youth Suicide Statistics shows that 'Suicide' is the SECOND leading cause of death for ages 10-24. Bullying can affect a person whether its, mentally, emotionally or physically. In the past 3 years, there has been many suicide reports in the News which feature young teens being bullied in school or on the web for anything as simple as race or gender preference. 'The most commonly reported form of harassment was unwanted physical touching followed by 'Rumor-spreading', Verbal sexual commentary and homophobic name calling," reports U.S. News. Every 12.8 minutes youth are taking their lives away because of the verbal or physical acts of one of their classmates or at times more than one. I read a particular article on FOX News that occurred in 2012 of Audrie Pott who drank Gatorade laced with alcohol at a friends party and then had inappropriate pictures taken of her which were then shared with several other teens. She later then hung herself days later. Another incident in April 2014, Ashley Cardona took her own life because she was tormented by kids in school because of the scar she had on her face. Kids would call her things like "Gorilla Scarface." She was only 12. Its events like these which scare me because that kid could possibly be my cousin or brother or even in the future my very own kid. It truly makes me wonder what drives these kids to make such horrible things to other human beings? It also gives me awareness because I see the harm it can do to people and also that I should help or intervene if someone needs help. Its a problem which you could see from 2012 to 2014 has not become any better, in fact it has become worse because now Cyber-bullying is huge. Movies, Documentaries and Campaigns have been huge in trying to stop bullying, its a very serious issue.
Camaron Thomas
ReplyDeleteDima
Period 3B
http://www.pickyournos.com/2011/12/11/attractiveness-stereotyping-and-the-effects-on-personality/
The social injustice appearance I'm writing about is appearance/stereotypes. The reason I'm wring about this issue is because it literally affects everyone , including you. The only way you could not be affected by this issue is to be invisible and/or never come in contact with other people, both of which are basically impossible in today's world. I'm hoping to discover why is isn't it okay to judge a book by its cover but it's alright to judge people based on how they look. I also hope that people see that they're being affected by this issue whether they know it or not. The text linked above helped me confirm that how people judge you based on our appearance affects your personality. A quote from the article that confirms this; "In certain collective groups the level of physical attractiveness can affect the social status of a group member."
Mykael Fenton
ReplyDeleteDima
3A
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=THmLeyzmPo8
In this video a social injustice that happens way too often happens in my own city. A young African-American Female is being bullied by a white police officer. Her hands are bound behind her back and she is powerless to stop the policeman as he slams her on her face. The only thing that you can do in a situation like this is watch.All you can do is be a bystander or you will get arrested. Many black lives are lost to careless and power hungry cops.They choke a man to.death woth a choke hold thats outlawed and no time in jail was given. Police are just criminals with permission
Not all police are criminals, but those that lurk with greed for power seek ways of achieving that power in order to satisfy themselves, to do what they couldn't do without a badge, those people that you describe in your response as "Criminals with permission". The lives of Treyvon Martin, Mike Brown, and Eric Garner were not lost in vain, without them we would have kept on with our own little world and not notice that racism still lurks right under our noses.
DeleteMykael, I disaggree. In fact I believe this is a topic about law vs social injustice. We don't know the full story or what led to this situation. I don't think this is social injustice but if you went more in dept why it is, it could've been convincing. Maybe try connecting this video to specific examples, such as the hate pyramid or acts of hatred. Your video was just an act of right or wrong not the overall topic, and we the people do not decide that.
DeleteJaquasia,
DeleteI am unclear as to what exactly you disagree with in Mykael's comment. I am also confused with what you call the topic of "law versus social injustice". Do you mean to point out that the video is an example of injustice because of the treatment of the woman by the police officer (as the law enforcement representation)?
Mykael-you make relevant connections to the national publicized cases of police officers abusing their roles. Be careful (like Andy points out) to refrain making generalizations when building an argument.
Aaron Morrison
ReplyDeleteMrs. Dima
English 2 Honors 3B
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/us/Social-injustice-at-home-is-hard-for-Americans-to-accept/articleshow/45400306.cms
"Social injustice at home is hard for Americans to accept"
In this article it is showing us an example of injustice
"They assume black men must be armed and whoever shoots first, lives." Excuse me for my language but as my mom would say when you assume your making an ass out of you and me. They are making an ass of themselves because after the officers killed these young men and found out afterwards that they were not doing anything wrong or causing trouble they look like an ass because they assumed wrong and now four young men are dead for no reason. Can you answer this for me, Why is reaching for their guns the first option when in law school or police training it is to tase or club them first. Again like the Treyvon Martin case, why did the officer get out of his car which was "Safety" at the time of this occurrence? What he did was social injustice because Treyvon was not white and he saw him walking down an alleyway to go home he figured he was gonna cause trouble BECAUSE he was not the same skin texture as himself. In the bible God states from Galatians 3:28-There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. He is saying we are all the same, we should all be treated the same, and we should behave and act like we are the same. This passage makes me think harder upon the fact that in the world people are killed or injured due to the fact of social injustice which is really and truly unfair. “Those who can make you believe absurdities, can make you commit atrocities.” This is another example of social injustice. I care about this issue because I, myself, am black and this makes me very anxious when encountering the officers with the law but with my morales from home I know how to act and behave when in the presence of police officers.
I agree with this. However, I think religion shouldn't be used to support this argument because not everyone has the same views when it comes to that topic especially in this country where there's freedom of religion.
DeleteLinaya Greene
ReplyDeleteMr. Loureiro
English 2 Honors
Source: http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2015/03/12/sources-arrest-made-in-videotaped-gang-beating-of-girl-in-brooklyn-mcdonalds/
This article is about a 16 year old teenager that has been arrested and charged for "jumping" a 15 year old girl inside of McDonalds. Aniah Ferguson (African American) of Brooklyn, New York has been charged as an adult with robbery and gang assault, according to the police. The fight broke out over a gang assault. The 15-year-old girl that was getting beat up got no help from spectators, including adults. Some bystanders even climbed on top of the table to get a better view of the fight and was able to record the fight as six to seven girls jumped in. The 15 year old girl was brutally injured and had to recover serious medical conditions. This article shows social injustice. Bullying and fighting has become a major problem for teens. Many teenagers that tend to fight and cause drama are ones with lack of attention and respect and the fact that there were bystanders involved, none of them offered to stop or break up the fight. That goes to show that even some adults that feed into that kind of altercation, has no heart or sympathy to do the right things. I believe that gang related activities are not okay because they cause danger against us and others. One question that I have is why do young teenagers feel that it is okay to make the wrong decisions?
Iryiana Rivera
ReplyDeleteMrs. Dima
3A
March 23, 2015
Child Neglect:
http://www.inquisitr.com/1652047/grandparents-arrested-in-shocking-child-neglect-case-teen-girl-found-weighing-only-40-pounds/
This is an article based on a child neglect case of a 15 year old girl in Indiana. She has been abused by her own grandparents, and was found weighing only 40 pounds, the weight of a five year old child. This teen has been in her grandparents care since 2009, and suffers from a chromosome problem with her brain. She hasn't been sufficiently taken care of because the "lack of money" the grandparents face, plus shes been taken off of medical support which gave her the nutrition she needed. Not only was the granddaughter taken off of her medical care, but she was locked up and kept in a room with little food and barely any heat. It disgusts me how people can treat humans, especially their own blood and creation, so poorly. People struggle each and every day to have children, while others are out here taking them for granted and treating them as if they were animals. Some people don't value such importance and beauty given to us, they rather not acknowledge it and use abuse as power. They abuse and belittle others to feel superior. And maybe these grandparents felt that they were not adequate enough to take care of their grandchild, especially because of their income situation along with her health situation. Because of this, they abused their own grandchild to feel more of themselves rather than less of themselves because of what they can’t do and provide for her. All in all, a child is a beautiful gift and to abuse them to a point where they don't even look their age is disgusting and inhumane. It leaves me speechless as to how these people exist in our world, taking advantage of something that was once you, because we all grow up the same.
Andy Catalán
ReplyDeleteMrs.Dima
English II Honors
3-A
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/09/18/the-us-is-losing-a-generation-to-poverty.html
In the passage, it is implying the social injustice issue of poverty. Politicians promise one thing but then may not reach those goals or even do the opposite, a main reason why poverty exist is that those who have the power to change the economy, give children and families a chance for a future choose not to, to benefit themselves with power, money. For us, civilians, we just become stereotypes to those who are just poor enough to have literally nothing, we think to ourselves, that they just probably spent all their money on drugs, just don’t care about their future, a reject to society. But we don’t even know (The homeless) their side of the story. For all we know they never even had a bed with blankets or gone to school, it’s like we are all automatically judging someone these days by their actions and physical appearance. I feel like poverty is connected to other injustice issues such as bullying, hate crimes, gender inequality, stereotyping, that the stability of a society may allow injustice to occur even if laws/rules are created. People hold the key to exterminating injustice but no one tries to change this issue because they’re scared of being judged, “crucified”, or are just followers, no one tries become a leader against this major problem then they won’t either. Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Sr. and Jr., Mandela all led a campaign toward the end of racism, they were leaders that people supported as people thought similar ideas but never stood up for their community because they didn’t have the courage to do so..
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteSaige Taylor
ReplyDeleteMrs.Dima
English 2 honors: A3
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ou7CyPtkpng&spfreload=10
This video is about discrimination on curly hair. I appreciated this video because the overall point of the video was that young girls should embrace their curly hair. This video showed social injustice because most people think straight hair empowers them to look professional in life. At the beginning of the video young girls were interviewed on their thoughts about why they don’t like their curly hair. One girl said, “Straight hair is more beautiful.” These thoughts derive from the actions of the parents and it goes back to different cultures. Some parents are bad influences on their children because they set standards. Some standards are when you get older you can get a relaxer, you can straighten your hair, etc. People go by these standards because curly hair is considered wild/unmanageable. I know growing up being mixed it was easy for me to wear my hair straight or curly. When I was with my Italian side I would want to straighten my hair so I can be like my cousins because I thought it looked better. When I was with my Puerto Rican and African American side I would wear my hair curly. I think this hatred also came from slavery, not just white vs. black but in general. If you think about it most slaves hair were never straight. It would be in braids, tangled, naturally curly, etc. whereas the slave owner’s hair would be slicked back. Overall I think that parents with children who have curly hair should encourage them to love their hair no matter the type they have. Going back to the video, these mothers were motivations to their children because they proved that curly hair is good.
Nicholas Mayne
DeleteI agree with Saige. I think some don’t want their curly hair because it would represent that your either wild or not proper, but this is not true. I think you shouldn't be judged because of hair but your hair may represent your personality. So maybe thats why some don’t like it.
Nicholas Mayne
ReplyDeletehttp://abc7chicago.com/society/12-year-old-boy-kills-himself-after-being-bullied-for-being-a-cheerleader/424020/
Social Injustice has become a huge problem, no matter what, ever day we see it happening and a lot of people don't even do anything about it. My article is about a 12 year old boy who commits suicide because he was bullied for being a cheerleader. I choose this story because it was very interesting in a sense. I felt like i needed to comment on this story. This boy wanted to be a male cheerleader for his school and he gets bullied for it. What he did took courage and bravery. Instead he was name called “gay” and other hateful slurs just because he did something that most people wouldn’t even have the guts to do! Things like this makes social injustice exist. Us, as individuals have to address these issues and make everyone know that it's not ok to bully someone and it will never be ok. Social Injustice can't stop if parents keep saying, “thats not my child so I don’t have to worry”, or “it will never happen to me so I’m fine”, but chances are that it is happening to your child or it may happen. Before that occurs people need to make a change now. I learned that one person can make a huge difference, but we just need that one person. Let it be you. The article states “ the harassment centered around Ronin being the only boy cheerleader for Vista Jr. Eagles squad. Children are being harassed at this young of an age. Gender rule is one of the main cause of certain issues. Genders rule tell me that its wrong for my friend to be a male cheerleader, for me to listen to One Direction, and for my sister to play football. This is not right, and we are being trained to accept it.
How are we not aware of social injustice in our surroundings? What causes us not to see it? I agree with you in stating that there are possibilities in which someone's child may be facing situations that relate to the issue of social injustice. Nick, why did you include the last statement stating that gender is one of the main cause of certain issues of bullying? Perhaps, you may want to include your point of view referring to this statement or any connections that also may assist you in clarifying your purpose that you want to address.
DeleteI completely agree the statement you made about many parents saying, “that's not my child so I don’t have to worry." Many people are not concerned about tragic things that happen to others unless they are involved in it for themselves. It would be nice if you clarified your ideas on gender roles. :)
DeleteKennedy Chapman
ReplyDeletehttps://t.co/Z4hJqEymDy
This video is about being a bystander and if you don't help the victim your help the rapist. When I first watched the video after every event that happened the rapist said "thanks for keeping your mouth shut" and made me think and feel like I was apart of the situation for not helping the victim and I was just watching the video. I choose to write about this issue because rape is not just an ordinary thing it's something that will follow you for life and change the way people view you. At first I would have preferred to be a bystander because I didn't want to get involved but it made me realize by even seeing the situation I was involved. We as individuals have the responsibility to address every and any social injustice situations. People only want you to react when they are in a situation and need help. The comment under the video says "if you don't help him your helping her" putting you in a situation where you think back to a time you saw someone needing help and didn't help them but you helped the person harassing them. Sometimes situations are hard to address yourself but there is always someone you could tell so they address it for you.
http://www.slate.com/blogs/xx_factor/2014/03/14/autistic_boy_abused_in_maryland_why_did_he_think_his_bullies_were_his_friends.html
ReplyDeleteThis article really got me thinking. It contradicted my thoughts about bullying totally. When I think about bullying I think about girls bullying girls and boys bullying boys. Sometimes even guys bullying girls but I really never thought about a girl bulling a boy. This article was about two teenage girls ages 15 and 17 that bullied a 16 year old Autistic boy. He thought that these girls were his friends and still do. He didn't understand that when they told would kick him, pull his hair, hold a knife to him and post videos of him masturbating and having sex with a family pet (like they asked him to) online that it was wrong. He just went along with everything because he thought these two girls were his friends. I never thought that girls would do this to a boy. It just kind of blew my mind when I read this article.
I am choosing to write about this is not because it's bullying. Lots of people write about bullying. I chose to write about this because I want people to know that it's not just girls bullying girls, guys bullying guys and girls, but girls can also bully guys. And I think that's something that people tend to forget. I want people to realize that anyone can be bullied and it doesn't matter who you are. Bullies come in both genders no matter who you are.
nobullying.com/amanda-todd-story/
ReplyDeleteThis story and video got me thinking a lot about the affects of cyber bullying and how much of a big problem it is. This article is about a girl named Amanda Todd who committed suicide from being bullied for years because a man online, who convinced her to show her topless body to him, sent pictures of her to everyone. She lost all her friends, was bullied in and out of school, developed severe anxiety and depression to the point where she couldn't even leave her house. And also got into drugs, alcohol, and started to self harm. This just shows how much bullying can affect a person emotionally and physically. In The article it said "another anonymous person sent her the picture and it went viral, creating a mass of bullying and teasing to the point that she had to change schools several times." The bullying was becoming out of control. These kids that were bullying her online were telling her to go die and they all thought it would be better off if she just killed herself because no one liked her anyway. People don't understand that words can really have a big impact emotionally on someone. Amanda made a video about her story and struggles that went viral after her death. I think its so terrible that no one takes notice or tries to make a change until it comes to the point where a death has already occurred. I care about this issue because I think most kids go through some form of bullying and it can be very damaging. I think Amanda's video gives a lot of awareness about this topic and I hope that if a lot of people are exposed to it then maybe people will start to realize how big of a deal bullying is. Maybe some people will even try to make a change and lessen the bullying that goes on everyday.